The flight of a golf ball is determined by many factors; however, most of these factors are outside of the control of a golfer. While a golfer can control the speed, the launch angle, and the spin rate of a golf ball by hitting the ball with a particular club, the distance that the ball travels after impact depends upon ball aerodynamics, construction and materials, as well as environmental conditions, e.g., terrain and weather. Since flight distance and consistency are critical factors in reducing golf scores, manufacturers continually strive to make improvements in golf ball flight consistency and flight distance through improving various aerodynamic properties and golf ball constructions.
Before the 1970s, most golf balls had 336 dimples arranged in an octahedron pattern, and had dimple coverage in the range of about 60-65%. During the 1970s, there was a trend toward dimple patterns that cover a relatively large proportion of the surface of the ball. These golf balls typically had about the same number of dimples (332) arranged into an icosahedron pattern. These dimples typically had the same size and provided about 70% coverage or more of the ball's surface. This provided a measurable improvement in flight distance. Beginning in the 1980s, there has been an additional shift toward larger number of dimples on the ball and multiple sizes of dimples on the ball. This trend toward higher dimple count during the 1980s was so strong that it was sometimes perceived as a “dimple war” among golf ball manufacturers.
These trends have cooperated to produce today's typical golf ball configuration, which has about 400 dimples in 2-5 different sizes and covers about 80% of the ball's surface. For example, the USGA uses the Pinnacle Gold LS as its standard setup golf ball. This ball has a 392-dimple pattern disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,786 with five sizes of dimples. In the past, aerodynamic and other performance characteristics of golf balls have been designed to suit the needs of various types of golfers from casual recreational players to highly skilled professionals. A typical distinguishing factor among these golfers is their swing speed. Professionals have generally defined the upper end of the range, with swing speeds sufficient to generate initial ball speed of around 160 miles per hour. Recently, the game of golf has attracted world class athletes due in part to increased prize money. Professional golfers are bigger, stronger and more aggressive than ever before. As a result, it is not unusual to see professionals and some amateurs who can generate initial ball speeds in excess of 170 miles per hour. However, there is no teaching in the art for a golf ball that is optimal for all ball speeds, including the very high ball speeds generated by today's players.
Hence, there remains a need for golf balls designed for increased distance for all golfers, including high swing speed golfers.